BGT 2022-23: The men who must step up for Australia to create history in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Former Australian captain Steve Waugh called India 'the final frontier'. For Australia, no country is genuinely the final frontier, given they have the highest winning percentage in Test history and have won at least one series in every Test-playing nation. But based on recent evidence and invincibility, India is indeed the final frontier for all teams, none more so than their next opponents, who haven't achieved that holy grail since 2004.
Not that Australia do not have the goods to succeed in India, but even their best might in all likeliness result in a loss. Besides their impeccable record on home soil, the senior Indian players keep reinventing themselves and the youngsters step up in a way that hardly anybody expects them to.
Yet, it's worth reflecting that Australia came closest among all teams in the last ten years to beating them when they visited the Indian shores six years ago. Hence, it's not completely unrealistic to give them a glimmer of hope.
Here are the men who must enjoy unprecedented success for Australia to create history in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy:
#6 Mitchell Starc
A key man in Australia's bowling attack, Mitchell Starc will miss the first Test due to a finger injury but is likely to return for the second. While Starc doesn't have an enviable record in India - averaging 50.14 in four Tests with seven wickets - his ability to produce reverse swing with the old ball would be critical. His left-arm single could also be a point of difference.
The 33-year-old showcased his skill with the old ball in Pakistan during the second and third Test against Pakistan last year, leaving their batters flummoxed. Staying fit for the entire leg of the tour will also be equally vital as his body withstood only one Test during the 2016-17 leg.
#5 Pat Cummins
The Australian captain faces the most daunting challenge of his captaincy tenure; however, he would be seeing it as an opportunity to go where some of his predecessors haven't. It was in India six years ago that he began his journey to becoming the top-ranked Test bowler and will walk into the series holding the spot having surged there four years ago. If fit, Cummins will be the first name on the team sheet for all four Tests.
The 29-year-old is as much a fantastic exponent of reverse swing as Starc and can bowl spell after spell tirelessly, much like he did in the 2016-17 tour. The right-arm paceman sent down 39 economical overs in Ranchi, followed by another 30 in the first innings of the final Test. How well he fares as captain on the tour remains to be seen.
An 18-player Test squad has been assembled for the Qantas Tour of India in February and March.
Congratulations to everyone selected! https://t.co/3fmCci4d9b
#4 Usman Khawaja
Who would've thought that Usman Khawaja would return to the Test side after struggling in the 2019 Ashes series in England? Let alone travel to India as a first-choice opener. The left-hander has undergone a purple patch since filling in for Travis Head in the Sydney Test during the 2021-22 Ashes leg in Australia, hitting twin centuries in that match.
He peeled off 1080 runs in 11 Tests at 67.50, headlined by feasting on Pakistan's bowling attack in their backyard last year. Khawaja's haul of 496 runs in three Tests at 165.33 helped Australia to their first overseas Test series victory since 2016. The southpaw played decently in slightly more challenging conditions in Sri Lanka, but awaits a litmus test against Ravichandran Ashwin and co. fresh off after winning the Shane Warne Test Player of the Year.
#3 Peter Handscomb
This might be an unusual name and the general expectation would be of Marnus Labuschagne, given his prolific run and record. However, Peter Handscomb has come into the 18-man squad as a sub-continent specialist and as Australia's best player of spin in the middle order alongside Steve Smith. Handscomb might not have played a Test in four years, but has continued to pile runs in the domestic circuit.
The Victorian was the highest run-getter in the 2021-22 Sheffield Shield leg, accumulating 697 runs in eight matches at 49.78, and is at the top so far in the current season. The 31-year-old proved his worth six years ago when he scored a gritty 72* on the final day in Ranchi to deny the hosts a near-certain win. While he is unlikely to start the series, given the emergence of Travis Head and his versatility with the ball, the tourists could need him at some point.
#2 Steve Smith
He is the most pivotal man in Australia's batting line-up not only because Steve Smith is the best Test batter of the current generation, but is world-class against spin bowlers.
Smith's career average of 60.89 is just a fraction higher than his Test batting average of 60 in India in six matches. The tweaked technique has allowed Smith to be even more productive, spelling out a warning sign for the Indian bowlers.
With a haul of 499 runs and three centuries, the 33-year-old, then captain, had almost single-handedly carried Australia to a series win on Indian soil during their last visit. It became evident that he will need support from the other batters and it appears as if the tourists have it this time around. He will also be equally critical in the slip cordon, given his excellent hands and with the ball if Cummins throws the ball at him.
What Smith couldn't achieve as captain, the four-time Allan Border medalist will hope to achieve as the deputy and it could be his final chance to conquer India.
We are watching a modern-day legend!
Century No.30 for Steve Smith! #PlayOfTheDay
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#1 Nathan Lyon
Nathan Lyon's credibility as Australia's lead spinner came under severe doubt after failing to bowl oppositions out on a few occasions in the fourth innings in the last two years. The off-spinner broke that rot when he took a fifer in the final Test against Pakistan in Lahore to spin Australia to a series victory.
The 35-year-old picked up 19 wickets in four Tests in the 2016-17 tour at 31.94, including a best of 8/50 in Bengaluru, but he arguably needs to have a lot more impact for the visitors to win. But while Lyon is a 115-Test veteran with 460 wickets, the other three spinners in Mitchell Swepson, Todd Murphy, and Ashton Agar have played only nine Tests between them with 19 victims. Hence, it will be on the veteran spinner to also shoulder the responsibility of guiding the inexperienced trio.